If you have a high deductible health plan (HDHP) and end up needing emergency or planned surgery that puts you close to or over your deductible, consider what other procedures or care you can add on in that plan year, as Carolyn McClanahan explains for Forbes. “By approaching your medical care in a thoughtful manner, you may be able to ‘front load’ a bunch of care into one year and only need to meet one large deductible.”

After her husband needed emergency tests done (he ended up being fine), McClanahan realized their deductible for the year would easily be surpassed. That left them an opening:

As a former star athlete, he has a number of lingering musculoskeletal issues. After he recovered from the accident I encouraged him to get every body part checked out and get all the physical therapy he required. I’m not as “medically needy” but had some skin issues and allergy problems I could take care of in that year. Additionally, I stocked up on my allergy medication for the next year. By loading all our care into one year, we were able to avoid going to the doctor the next year. The plan worked beautifully.﻿

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Let’s put aside how messed up it is that you need to strategize health care at all in the U.S. to such an extent, lest you end up bankrupt. That’s the state of American health care in 2018.

It’s obviously not an ideal situation, but it’s a good reminder that planning your care can save you a bundle. You’ll want to start earlier than the year to make sure you can get everything in on time.

For some other HDHP hacking tips, check out this post from Beth Skwarecki, Lifehacker’s Health Editor, and remember all the “freebies” you can get without using your deductible.